CROWN POINT | The city has reached a settlement agreement of just more than $500,000 with a Gary-based construction company that filed for bankruptcy last year, City Attorney David Nicholls said Wednesday.

Nicholls said the city hired Bucko to do more than $800,000 in paving; the settlement total is $510,324. The money was appropriated by the city in 2007.

In January, the Crown Point Board of Works approved hiring attorney William Vonwiller to represent the city in a case related to Bucko's bankruptcy.

Vonwiller has billed the city about $5,000 for his work on the lawsuit, Nicholls said.

The city hired Bucko Construction in May 2007 for its 2007 paving program. The company filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy last fall. It was converted to a Chapter 7 bankruptcy in February, meaning Bucko's assets will be sold to pay off its debts.

Seneca Petroleum Co. also filed a complaint against the city, asking it to pay Seneca directly for more than $350,000 in asphalt materials it provided Bucko for use in the city's paving project, the Times archives show.

According to federal bankruptcy court records, creditors have filed more than $21 million in claims against the company.